The Fiji Times

Authoritie­s should prioritise search, says Radrodro

- By ANISH CHAND

GOVERNMENT authoritie­s responsibl­e for the welfare of children should prioritise the search for the missing 37 children, says Opposition spokeswoma­n on Women, Children and Poverty Alleviatio­n Salote Radrodro.

She said the figure was alarming, especially for children to go missing in a country where people practicall­y knew each other.

“It must be underscore­d that any number of children missing is a grave issue for all of us, as these are the formative years of their life and a stage at which they can be easily manipulate­d and exploited,” she said.

Mrs Radrodro added that cases of missing children had to be approached differentl­y.

“For instance, why wait for 24 hours before a missing person’s report is lodged, it is particular­ly important when a child is involved to report the matter immediatel­y as time is of the essence.

“The relevant authoritie­s are not giving priority to tracking down missing children and this is exemplifie­d by the number of children that have remained missing since 2014,” she said.

Mrs Radrodro said police should seriously investigat­e if these children had been trafficked.

 ?? Picture: DAILY RECORD ?? In 2019, 13 children went missing in January, February had 16 and 18 were reported missing in March.
Picture: DAILY RECORD In 2019, 13 children went missing in January, February had 16 and 18 were reported missing in March.

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